Tetris Effect: Connected is one of the greatest single-player games ever made with multiplayer (and an unlikely Xbox Series X and S launch killer app). It’s an easy sell to someone like me, who adores Tetris Effect to the point of never really shutting up about it. But its timing couldn’t be better.
I was lucky enough to get the chance to play Tetris Effect: Connected for just over an hour recently, and yes, it has the versus multiplayer you’d expect, with the time-stopping Zone mechanic cleverly woven in, but what’s most interesting about this game is the co-op.
The co-op, called Connected (a riff on Tetris Effect’s life-affirming title song), sees three players team up to try to defeat computer-controlled bosses. That’s right, boss fights in Tetris Effect – and it’s wondrous.
Tetris Effect: Connected – Announce Trailer Watch on YouTube
Here’s how it works: you start by playing in your own matrix, clearing lines as normal. Occasionally the boss will send over attacks, called Blitzes, your way, triggering a game-changing effect that annoys the hell out of you. The boss might turn your screen upside down, or send over a super large Tetrimino. That kind of thing. The boss can also choose to go on the defense, too. Here, the boss can remove some of the garbage lines you’ve sent over.